Smoke and Mirrors
by Laura Hollis
Summary: 'Hesitantly, she reached for it, but reminded herself to be 'tough', that the small, digital words shouldn't be intimidating.' Taz has worked too hard to lose her rank to the mistake growing inside of her, and she'll do anything to get rid of it.


_**Smoke and Mirrors**_

Rated: PG-13/T for mild smut, cursing and drug abuse. 

Characters: Taz, Up, February and Krayonder.

Pairings: Taz/Up romance, Taz/February friendship, February/Krayonder friendship.

Her stomach clenched, emptying its' contents into the toilet she was currently hunched over. To put it lightly, Taz felt like shit. Complete and utter shit.

She washed out her mouth of the repulsive taste, internally battling herself to believe it was just a stupid flu, or she ate something bad. Her more rational side argued that she hadn't gotten sick in almost seven years, and what she ate was the same as what she always did, but her tough side won. It wasn't even possible, what her rational side was whispering at her from the back of her mind. Keeping that in mind, she left her bathroom, bumping into Up as she pushed open the door.

"O-oh, hey, Taz." he smiled, placing his hand on her shoulder. She nodded at him, forcing something she hoped resembled smile, not meeting his eyes. His grin faltered, and he dropped his voice low enough she only she would be able to hear, "It's nothing to be embarrassed about, Taz, you hear February and Bug at it every night. Heck, even Krayonder and Specs are way too loud some nights. It's natural. Unless, well, unless you regret it..." he murmured, but saw her shake her head at the last part. "Good, I don't regret it, either."

He gave her shoulder a small squeeze, and, with that gesture, he left. Taz let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, and began to think about what had happened only a few weeks ago.

They were on Up's bed, watching the Karate Kid, a movie which the two could quote word by word. Somehow during the movie, which they managed to do every time, they ended up in a rather interesting, more-than-platonic position. Taz laid on his chest, gently tracing her finger over where human flesh became robotic, whereas Up's arm was wrapped around her, pulling her even closer. The movie seemed to have been forgotten, the two more interested in each other than anything at the moment. 

On any other night, they would be stealing glances at each other, pretending they didn't notice when their opposite was studying them. But, tonight, for some unknown reason, was different. When Taz let her eyes explore his face, his eyes, his lips, he looked right back at her, staring from her brown orbs to her pink-tinted pout. Unconsciously moving closer, Taz's eyes flickered from his eyes to his lips again, and then it happened.

They couldn't exactly tell who kissed who, but once it had begun, they couldn't stop. It's as if the years buried feelings resurfaced and were trying to be communicated without words. Her lips were tingling, a strange feeling built in the pit of her stomach. 

His hands wandered from her back to her neck, then ghosted over her collarbone. Taz gasped slightly, a sound so very un-Taz-like that Up stopped what he was doing to make sure she was okay. She nodded, and Up discovered that he liked these sounds, and he planned on hearing them very often that night.

Taz groaned, hitting her head against the metal walls on the Starship. How could she give herself to someone like that? Why couldn't she be happy to die a virgin? Though, she reasoned the the best person to give herself to was Up. Her best friend, the man who saved her life a hundred times. She internally scolded herself for not asking him to use protection, but remembered February had somehow found them, thinking they were balloons, and used them all. Anyway, Taz wasn't scared about what most people worried about, besides, Up couldn't, even if he tried. What she was nervous about was STDs, which could go on record in health and body evaluations.

Warily, she walked to the gym, mentally noting to test herself at the medical bay after training. Being the commander's best friend did have it's advantages, like a master key and permission to roam the ship whenever you wanted.

O.O.O.O.O.O

The light flickered for but a moment, and the bulbs emitted a pleasant humming, a sound only paired with the echoed footsteps of the sweaty Lieutenant. She paced down the long aisles of tall white cabinets. She scrunched her face up in disgust at the one labeled 'Sexual Diseases, etc', but opened the doors nonetheless. Three huge boxes rested in the cabinet: 'Boys', 'Girls' and 'Both'. She peered into 'both' curiously, but was met with the sight of condoms and other... toys that even February would find horrifying. She shoved the box away, instead turning to the 'Girls' box. Taz rummaged through the box, finally finding the object of her visit. A electronic-type stick, with a digital screen on the end. She awkwardly walked to the sick bay's bathroom, and used the device the traditional way. How could the human race build Starships, zappers, and colonize other planets... but not make feminine tests that required more dignity than pissing on a stick? 

The results took a few minutes, which gave her time to mull things over in her head. There was medication for most STDs, right? She could probably jack some pills from February, no problem. Hopefully she wouldn't have any, but if she did, it would clear up soon enough. In the calm silence, she jumped at the small beeping coming from the test, indicating the ready results. Hesitantly, she reached for it, but reminded herself to be 'tough', that the small, digital words shouldn't be intimidating. She scrolled through all the red-lettered words, her relieve increasing as she reached the bottom. She was so caught up in relieve, she almost didn't notice the last word on the list, green-lettered and blinking positively at her.

'Pregnant'

Taz had never screamed so loud in her life.

This may or may not be continued. It's more of a side project.

First Tup in the category… yay!


End file.
